Summer Night Lights
by Zanza Flux
Summary: Henry decides to do something special for Bendy.


**A/N:** This story is based on a BatIM 2D Bendy AU by Shinyzango on Tumblr. Check it out. It's really cool.

 **Disclaimer:** Bendy and the Ink Machine is owned by TheMeatly. I only own my ocs.

 **Summer Night Lights**

Henry knew summer was fast approaching. The days were getting longer and the night's shorter. Work was bearable these days because he wasn't coming home in the dark. The other reason he looked forward to going home is because he had someone waiting for him. Bendy gave him a reason to roll out of bed each morning. His enthusiasm and his ability to find wonder in the littlest thing is what made Henry feel alive.

It was Friday and Henry decided to do something special when he got home. He stopped by the local grocery store to pick up a few things. As he got closer to home, he noticed his toon friend playing with the neighborhood kids. Deep down he thanked them for keeping him busy. He pulled up into his driveway and got out of his car, arm full of packages.

"Hey Henry! Do ya need a hand?" The man peered over his bags to see the little toon and a few of the kids running up to him.

"Nah bud I'm good. You go ahead a play awhile longer. I'll be getting dinner together." Bendy nodded and ran off. Henry hefted his packages in his arms as he pushed open the door. He kicked the door closed and headed for the kitchen.

An hour later Bendy left the kids and returned home. He found Henry mixing something in a large bowl. The little toon grabbed a stool and pulled it over to the counter so he could stand on it. He peered into the bowl and noticed Henry was mixing seasoning into some ground meat.

"Whatcha fixin' tonight?" Henry chuckled when Bendy looked up at him with a huge grin on his face. He finishes preparing the meat and hands the bowl to the little toon.

"Take this and follow me out to the backyard." Henry went into the frig and grabbed a pack of hotdogs along with buns. Bendy jumped down from the stool and chased after the man.

Henry had a picnic table set up with plates, mustard and ketchup, and a pitcher of iced tea. Bendy placed the bowl on the table and walked over to a hole in the ground. The closer he got, the hotter it seemed to get.

"Be careful there bud. I've had that fire pit burning for awhile now. It's good and hot." The toon looked back at him a little confused.

"A fire pit?" He looked back and noticed the hole was surrounded by brick with a grill sitting over the heat. "What's it used for?"

"For barbequing buddy." Henry walked over and used some tongs to carefully place a few hotdogs on the grill. He watched as the toon stared into the fire. The man reached out and placed his hand on top of the little toon's head. "Those dogs will cook really quick like this and taste better than cooking it on the stove."

"Woah, really?" Bendy looked up at his friend, his black eyes practically sparkling. Henry just chuckled and shook his head. He told the toon to grab a couple of buns so he can try it out. He never seen the little devil move so fast. Henry rolled the hotdogs a few times before placing them in the buns. They sat at the table and enjoyed the dogs and glasses of sweet iced tea. The corners of Henry's mouth twitched as he watched the toon practically drown his hotdog in mustard.

"Oh wow, this really does taste better!" he managed to stick half of it into his mouth and munched on it happily.

"Told ya bud. Just wait until you try my hamburgers. But before I cook those, I need to set something up." Henry walked away from the table. Bendy watched as he fished through a large bag that was sitting next to a tree. He pulled out something that looked like a giant net and some rope. Henry tied the rope to both ends of the net before tying the rope between the two trees in the yard. Bendy walked over to study it.

"Umm, what is this? Are you going to catch something in this net?" That made Henry laugh and the little demon looked confused.

"It's called a Hammock. You lay in it and it swings from side to side." Henry demonstrated it by pushing the hammock and causing it to swing.

'Can I give it a try?" Bendy was jumping up and down and his gloved hands were balled into fists. He looked so excited.

"Sure buddy, just be careful." He watched as Bendy tried to climb up into the net. Henry had to suppress his laughter as he could see Bendy struggling to get in the hammock. It kept swaying and he couldn't seem to get both legs in at the same time. At one point the toon managed to get in only to have the hammock flip over. The poor toon was clinging to the underside of the net like a cat hanging off a screen door. The large eyes and panicked expression on his face broke Henry and he doubled over in laughter.

"This isn't funny! Help me out of this spinning death trap!" Henry waved his hand and tried to get himself under control. He wrapped his arms around the toon and lifted him off the net.

"Sorry buddy. We'll try this again later." Bendy looked at him like he was crazy and that just started up another fit of giggles. "C'mon, lets get the burgers on the grill." The little demon looked back at the hammock and shuddered. He wasn't looking forward to getting back in that thing.

Bendy sat in the soft grass and watched Henry roll then flatten the seasoned meat before placing it on the hot grill. He sniffed the air and it smelled so good. He couldn't help but smile at how relaxed the man seemed to be. Most of the time he was so tired when he came home from work but he always took time out to be with him. That made him happier than Henry will ever know.

Henry flipped the burgers a few times and made sure they were cooked all the way through. He placed the cooked meat on a pan and made his way to the picnic table. He grabbed some buns, placed the meat on it with some cheese and ketchup and handed one to Bendy.

"Thanks Henry! *sniff* Mmm, this smells so good!" He bit into the juicy meat. he closed his eyes and sighed softly as he savored the taste of the seasoned meat, cheese, and sweetness of the ketchup.

"You enjoying yourself bud?" Henry chuckled at the way the toon's head bobbed up and down slowly. He took another bite and a dreamy look crossed his face. Henry was glad he liked the food. He would have to do this more often during the summer.

They both had a few more burgers before relaxing and sipping on the cool iced tea. They were both full and happy. They spent that time just talking and laughing about their day. Henry grabbed a paper bag and pulled out two thin metal sticks. He stood up and stretched a bit earning a few satisfying pops from his back.

"C'mon bud, I have another treat for ya." Bendy followed the man to the fire pit. He watched as Henry used tongs to remove the grill from the heat. He sat down in front of the pit and patted the space next to him. The toon sat down next to him and was curious to see what the man was up to.

Henry reached into the bag and pulled out a smaller bag with puffy white things in it. He took two out and placed them on the end of each metal stick. He handed one stick to Bendy and he held onto the other.

"Henry? What is this?" Bendy poked and squeezed it. It felt really soft.

"It's a marshmallow. It's soft and sweet. But don't eat it yet!" Bendy froze with the sweet treat hovering over his opened mouth. He pulled it away and chuckled guiltily. He apologized and Henry told him it was okay.

"This is what you do." Henry pulled out some gram crackers and a bar of chocolate out of the bag. He broke the chocolate bar in half and placed it on top of the crackers. Hendy held the stick over the heat and Bendy followed suit. The marshmallow began to melt and char just a little bit. Henry pulled his away and tested it to make sure it was soft enough.

"Now you place the marshmallow between the chocolate and another piece of gram cracker." It looked like he was making a strange sandwich. Bendy did the same thing and looked back at Henry.

"Just let it cool for a second, then take a bite!" Henry blew on his a few times before digging into it. Bendy turned it over a few times before taking a bite. Henry didn't think his friend's eyes could get any bigger than they were now. He looked down at the treat with wonder as he chewed slowly.

"W-what is this? It's so good! So sweet and it just melts in my mouth…" The melted chocolate and the cracker were great but the marshmallow made it all so special. He had a hard time describing the taste because he'd never had anything like this before.

"It's called S'mores." Henry finished his and began making two more.

"Wow Henry! Where did you learn to make this?" At that moment, Bendy wondered if he should have asked when Henry looked at the toon with a sad smile on his face.

"My dad. We used to do this all the time." Henry scratched at the back of his head absentmindedly. "We used to go camping when I was very young. We would roast hotdogs over an open fire. Before we turned in for the night, he would always make S'mores."

That was the first time Bendy ever heard him talk about his dad. It was then he realized he really didn't know that much about Henry. He really didn't like talking about himself that much.

Henry handed the little toon another S'more when he noticed he finished the first one. Bendy looked like he wanted to ask him something but seemed to change his mind. They enjoyed a few more S'mores before Henry pointed to the hammock.

"Ready to give that another try bud?" Bendy gave him a nervous smile. "Sure, I guess." They both walked over to it. Henry grabbed the edge and kept his balance as he swung both legs into the hammock. He reached out his hand to Bendy.

"C'mon bud, you can trust me." Bendy blinked at that statement. After everything they've been through, of course he trusted him! He took Henry's hand and the man hoisted him up into the hammock. The toon was resting against the man's chest. He was surprised he didn't get flipped out of the net like last time.

Henry had one hand behind his head while the other was placed on the top of Bendy's head. He could feel the little toon curling up against his side and resting his head against his chest. Henry twisted his body just enough to get the hammock to sway from side to side. He felt Bendy stiffen a bit before relaxing.

Bendy looked up and watched as the sky began to darken. As the sun went down, the sky was ablaze in reds, pinks, and purples. The colors were so beautiful and soon he could see the twinkling of stars. He never thought he'd ever see a sight like this. He turned his head slightly to look at Henry. He had his eyes closed.

"Hey Henry?"

"Hmm?

"Umm, what was your dad like?"

Henry opened his eyes to see Bendy staring at him. He sighed softly. He hadn't talked about his old man in a long time.

"Well, he was a good guy. He was a hard worker, always making sure we had what we needed. We didn't have much but he was always looking out for us."

"So, he's just like you." Bendy smiled softly before resting his head against Henry's chest. He could hear the gentle thrumming of his heart. It reminded him that he was here, Henry was with him and they were both safe. His eyes began to droop before closing completely. He let the thumping of Henry's heart lull him off to sleep.

Henry was surprised by what Bendy said. He didn't think he was like his old man. He spent many years trying to be like him. _'Heh, I guess I became like my old without even realizing it.'_

He listened as Bendy lightly snored. Henry wasn't tired so he just watched the night sky. It was so quiet. The only sounds that could be heard was the distant chirping of crickets. It was nice and peaceful. He needed to do this more often for Bendy's sake at least.

 **-OoOoOoO-**

"Bendy?"

"Mmm…" He could feel his shoulder being nudged.

"Hey buddy. Wake up."

"Jus five more minutes mph…" Henry's constant nudging was pulling him out of his sleep and he was getting annoyed.

"Open your eyes. You have to see this."

The toon's curiosity was peaked now. He grumbled a little more before cracking open one eye. Soon both eyes were wide open and he was blinking.

Tiny lights were floating all around them. They would disappear then come back again. Little green-ish lights floating around them like ghosts.

"H-Henry, what are they?"

"They are fireflies. Little insects that show up during the summer. They fly around and glow at night." Henry held out his hand and waited for one to brush his fingers. He closed his hand around it gently and pulled it close for Bendy to see.

"Hold out your hand." Bendy held out his gloved hand. Henry opened his and the toon could see a tiny bug crawling across his hand. It moved from the man's hand to his own. It would flap it's wings every now and again and its tail would flash brightly.

"Wow" Bendy watched as the firefly crawled up one of his fingers. It flapped its wings a few more times and twinkled before flying away. _'Is this what it was like to actually touch the stars?'_ the little toon wondered as the tiny lights seemed to surround them. They swayed in the hammock and watched the fireflies do their little dance for a few minutes more.

"You ready to head inside buddy?" Bendy shook his head.

"Can we stay just a bit longer?" Henry reached down and rubbed the top of the toon's head."

"Sure. It's a nice night." It was the little things that made Henry happy these days. Just watching the wonder in Bendy's eyes was worth everything they went through in the Studio.


End file.
